Footed glassware



Oct. 16, 1934. I H, R SCHUTZ 1,977,091

FOOTED GLAS SWARE Filed May 21, 1954 s Sheets-Sheet 1 fill/Mull mm;

Oct. 16, 1934. H. R SCHUTZ FOOTED GLASSWARE Filed May 21, 1934 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Im/en or fyamiz 527521,;

Oct. 16, 1934.

H. R. SCHUTZ .FOOTED GLASSWARE Filed May 21, 1934 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Im/enTBF 1%2012 #5275212;

Patented Oct. 16, 1934 ri-"i ca FQOTED GLASSWARE" Harold R. SchutZ OttaWa Hills, hio, a ssignor toThe Libbey Glass Manufacturing Toledo, Ohio, a corporation of v 0hioj C pa y;

. Application May 21,1934, Serial-No; 726,679: 6 Claims. (o1. 13.

.5 foot, or supporting member, preferably in the,

form of a downwardly and outwardlyextending substantially annular flange projecting from the bottom portion of the hollow receptacle.

' A'preferred ,and convenient methodan'd ap- 10 paratus for producing a glass article of this type is disclosed and claimed. in my, copending application SerialNo. 695,265, filed October 26, 1933, although it will be understood that the article as disclosed and claimed in this present application might be produced by other means.

Briefly described, this article comprises an upper bowl or receptacle portion which may take a variety. of forms, but which is preferably provided with an. upper open mouth and which curves ,inwardly' and downwardly towards a closed bottom adjacent its lowerjend. The integral foot portion is injthe form of an annular flange which preferably curves outwardly and downwardly'toward a rounded supporting ring,

5 the outer walls of this foot being preferably smooth and continuous.) The lower portion of this foot is dished upwardly and inwardly toward the bottom ofjthe receptacle, and is preferably interiorly corrugated in the form of a plurality ,30 of concentric substantially horizontal steps joined by roundedportions so as to avoid any sharp edges or corners. This corrugated cons'truction, not only presents certain advantages in the production of the article, as will be hereinaf ter brought out, but also stiifens the supporting foot and facilitates the ornamentation there of. The article ispreferably formed of trans.- parent glass, and this-corrugated bottom con-. struction as, viewed downwardly through the 40 walls of the foot or receptacle produce a lens efieot which isnot only ornamental, but tends to obliterate or render unnoticeable any blisters or other. defects in the glass structure which might form during theprocess of manufacture. v -The principal object of this invention is to provide an improved glass article-of the type briefly described hereinabove and disclosed more in detail in theispecifications which follows.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will be more apparent from the following detailed description of one approved form -of this glass article as well as a preferred method and apparatus forprod'ucing' the same.

the'accompanying drawings:

'g'. his a perspective view 'of one form of theglassart'icle.

Fig. 2 is a 'cntr'al'vertical section through the bottom portion of this article. a I

Fig. 3 is a perspective view looking upwardly at the lowerv fa'ceof the foot portion. Figsg4 to 9' inclusive are views illustrating a preferred method and apparatus for producing this article. fseparately described:

Fig. 4" is 'a plan view showing the mold sections inopened position.

Fig. 51is a'verticalsection through a portion of the apparatus, this view also illustrating one ofthe initial" steps in the formation of the tumbler Figs. 6, and 8 are views similar to the righthand perm-m ofi i'g. 5"illustrating successive steps in the formationof the tumbler or similar glass" article. i A

Fig. 9 is anenlarge'd horizontal section taken substantially on' the line 9-9' of Fig. 6. v 1

Before describing in detail the improved article shown inFigs'. 1, 2 and 3, the preferred method of producing'fthis article will first be briefly described,'referring more particularly to Figs. 4 to 0 9 inclusive. *This method is more completely dis- 1 closed and' claimed in my copending application Serial No. 695,265; he'reinaoove referred to. At 1 is indicated the lower end of the spindle of an automatic glass-'blowingmachine of well known type. i In such a machine, means is usually provided for inverting thisspindle (so that'th'e end 1 will point upwardlyinstea'd of downwardly), means is also provided'for rotating'or oscillating the spindle and the glass blank carried thereby about the-longitudinal axis of the spindle and blank, and means is provided for blowing-air through the spin'dle into'the' glass blank to expand the same. A measured mass of molten glasswhich has been withdrawn from the source 5 off'molten'glass an'dpartially formed by a suitable 'gath'eringrnecha'nism is dropped onto the end 1 of the inverted'spindl'e and elampedin place by the movable jaws indicated at 2. A small opening is punched in the center of this mass of glass by aplunger movable within the spindle, and pufis' ofair are blown through the spindle into this internalcavity to partially expand the glass blank or parison. The spindle is swung downwardly or 'inverted so that the glass blank hangs downwardly and is rotated'oroscillated about its longitudinal axis, and'b'y blowing air into the'glass blank in suitably 'timed relation to these'movem'ents a'wide variety of different conformationsfmay be given to the freely hanging glass blank carried by the spindle. Sufficient to state that this spindle mechanism is so adjusted as to form an elongated glass blank or parison of substantially the shape and proportions indicated at 3 in Fig. 5.

The confining member for giving form to the glass article includes a paste-lined mold comprising the two similar sections 4 and 5 which are supported by bracket arms 6 pivoted on a vertical pin '7. The entire mold assembly is carried by a supporting and operating mechanism indicated generally at 8 by means of which the mold is moved into and out of position beneath the spindle, and by which the mold sections 4 and 5 are closed about the parison 3 as shown in Fig. 5 and at a later time opened or separated as shown in Fig. 4 to permit the removal of the finished glass article.

The cavity in the mold (one half of which is formed in the two sections 4 and 5) comprises the main central portion 9 which gives exterior form tothe finished receptaclefand upper portion 10 which confines the upper converging portion of the glass blank which is afterwards cut away and used as cullet, and a lower portion 11 in which the lower portion of the blank, which eventually forms the footed base for the receptacle, is initially allowed to expand in hollow form; The portions 9 and 10 of the cavity are given any desired practicable configuration according tothe desired form and proportions of the glass article to be produced. It will be .understcod that all portions of this mold cavity are circular in horizontal cross section, that is are symmetrical about the central vertical axisof the mold, so that the glass blank may be rotated about this central vertical axis in the usual manner. The lower cavity 11 comprises an upper horizontally and downwardly projecting portion 12 which gives form to the upper surface of the supporting foot of the receptacle (see Figs. 1 to 3), and a cylindrical portion 13 which projects downwardly from the outer edges of the portion 12.

The lower end of each semi-cylindrical mold section is partially closed by a bottom plate 14, and one of these bottom plates is formed with a downwardly projecting central hub portion 15 which guides and supports the inner movable plunger or stem 16. The bottom plate 14 attached to the other mold section is centrally recessed to fit about this hub 15 when the mold is closed so that the two plates 14 and the hub 15 form a continuous closure for the lower end of the mold.

The stem or plunger 16 which supports and actuates the movable bottom member indicated as a whole at 1'7, is centered about the central vertical axis of the mold and is guided for vertical movement within passage 18 formed in hub 15. The efiective length of the downwardly projecting portion of stem 16 is adjusted as desired by means of screw bolt 19 mounted in the lower end of stem 16 and held in adjusted position by lock nut 20. Suitable means 21 (seeFigs. 6 and '7) is provided for engaging the lower face of screw 19 for automatically giving the desired upward movements to stem 16 and bottom plate 1'7 in properly timed relation to the blowing operation performed through spindle 4.

The upper movable plunger assembly or bottom member 17 comprises a central plunger head 22 fixedly mounted on the upper end of stem 16 and a plurality of concentric annular members 23, 24 and 25 which are telescopically assembled about one another and about the plunger head 22 so that the upper surfaces of these members will all lie in substantially the same horizontal plane when the bottom member 17 is in lowered position as shown in Figs. 5 and 6. The annular member 23 comprises an upper head portion 26 and a downwardly extending sleeve portion 27 of reduced external diameter, this sleeve 27 fitting slidably about the plunger head 22. A plurality of compression springs 28 are housed in recesses or slots formed in sleeve 27, these springs bearing at their upper ends against the head portion 26 of member 23 and bearing at their lower ends on an outwardly projecting flange 29 formed at the lower end of plunger 22. A sleeve 30 having the same exterior diameter as the head 26 is threaded onto sleeve 27 and is provided with a lower inwardly projecting annular flange 31 engaging beneath the flange 29 to limit the expansion of springs 28. These springs are under initial compression so as to hold the flanges 29 and 31 in engagement, at which time the upper surface of head 26 is in horizontal alignment with the upper surface of plunger head 22. It

will be noted that with the parts in this normal position the sleeve 2'7 does not extend downwardly into engagement with flange 29 of the plunger member so that when the upward movement of annular member 23 is retarded or limited the plunger head 22 may continue to move upwardly,

thus compressing the springs 28, until the sleeve 1 2'7 engages the fiange 29. Similar yieldable connections are provided between the several concentric bottom members 23, 24 and 25.

After the mold sections 4. and 5 have been closed about the previously formed blank 3, as shown in Fig. 5, the blowing mechanism operates through spindle l to admit air under pressure to the interior of the blank so as to expand the blank into the general form indicated in Fig. 6.

At this time theportion of the glass blank above the dotted line a-a in Fig. 6 has obtained substantially its final form. The portion of the blank between the dotted line a-a and the upper dotted line bb comprises the side walls of the finished receptacle A. After the forming process herein disclosed is completed and the glass article has been removed from the mold, the upper portion of the blank is cut off substantially on the line b-b and all of the glass above this line is scrapped and used as cullet. The portion of the glass blank below the line aa expands into the cylindrical cavity 11 above the lowered plunger assembly 1'7, substantially as shown in Fig. 6, so as to form a lower hollow extension comprising cylindrical side walls 32 and a substantially horizontal bottom wall 33. The lower outer edge portion of this hollow extension will not expand tightly into the lower outer edge of the mold cavity but will remain somewhat rounded as indicated at 34.

Immediately following this initial blowing step of the process, and while the glass of the blank is still in an approximately molten condition, the plunger assembly 17 is elevated rather slowly and steadily by any suitable means, for example the cam mechanism disclosed in detail in my hereinabove mentioned copending application Serial No. 695,265. It will be understood that during this elevation of the plunger air under pressure is still maintained within the blank and the spindle 1 continues to spin or oscillate the blank within the mold. As the plunger 1'7 rises, the molten glass forming the side walls 32 will be compressed,

the excess glassfiowing inwardly so as to thicken the side walls 32 and the adjacent portion of hot- 1,977,091 tom wall 33. During the initialportion of this the-outer portion of the foot B of the glass article has -attained substantially its final 'form, theupwardmovement of member will'be retarded or halted and the inner members of-the plunger as s'embly will continue to move upwardly compressing the outer group of springs. Th'is' intermediate step in the operation is indicated in Fig.7. It will be noted that the upper'outer edges of the plunger membersare'cut away or beveledas indicated at so" as not'to form sharply defined edges in the lower-portion of the foot member 13 of the glass article. The molten glass will'drape itselfover these plunger members as they are successively elevated one within the other so as to form a series of rounded or fluted surfaces in the lower concave portion of the foot substantially as shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3. There will therefore be no sharp edges in the lower portion of the tumbler and the corrugated or stepped surfaces will impart an attractive ornamental appearance to the foot when viewed downwardly through the transparent glass walls of the article.

In an exactly similar manner the annular mem-' ber 23 will be elevated above the member 24, and the plunger head 22 will eventually be elevated above the annular member 23 until the plunger assembly has reached its upper limit of movement as indicated in Fig. 8. It will be understood that air pressure is constantly being applied to the inner surface of the blank so that this inner surface will be rounded out as indicated in Fig. 8 to form a smooth lower surface to the cavity within the tumbler or other glass article. It will be noted that the molten glass forming this lower portion of the blank is re-formed by this progressive pressing operation, rather than folded and welded, so that there will be substantially no evidences of a weld in the finished glass article I to indicate the initial hollow form of this portion of the article.

The improved glass article forming the particular subject matter of the present application comprises an upper bowl or receptacle portion A and an integral lower supporting foot member B,

" the article being preferably'formed from a single blank of glass (for example in the manner hereinabove described), although any other suitable method of manufacture may be used. The upper bowl or receptacle portion A may be given any one of a plurality of desirable configurations, this receptacle member preferably having an upper open mouth portion with a beaded edge a, and the lower side walls 2) preferably curve inwardly and downwardly to merge into the bottom wall 0 of the receptacle.

The integral foot or supporting member B is preferably in the form of an outwardly and downwardly extending annular flange joining at its top with the bottom 0 of the receptacle and terminating at its lower edge in a rounded annular supporting ring d. The outer and upper surface of this foot portion is preferably smooth and rounded outwardly and downwardly as indicated at e so as to form a re-entrant angle 1, between the receptacle portion A and the foot member B having smooth side walls; This lower angled portion provides a smooth recess for receiving the hand of the user and provides for asafe, convenient and comfortable grip. r

The bottom portion of foot member B- is dished upwardly and inwardly toward the bottom wall 0 of the receptacle. The wall of this bottom recess preferably comprises a series of concentric "substantially horizontal step portions 9, gand g connected'by inner roundedportions h and outer roundedporners 1l.'*This provides a-cireularly corrugated surfacewhich has noobjectionable sharp edges and which maybe easily and conveniently cleaned. This recessed bottom portion reduces the amount of glass in the foot member and thus avoids any nnecessary weight in the glass article, butat the same time this foot is sufficiently large andheavy to provide a well balanced article, and one that will be stable and dilhcult to upset, whether the tumbler be filled or empty. The internally corrugated construction of the foot member provides an additional stiffness and rigidity to prevent distortion, particularly'while the 'glass is still *hot and in its formative stage.

Preferably this article will be formed of transparent glass so thatthis bottom corrugated or fluted surface will be visible through the walls of the'foot portion (as well as the walls of the receptacle) when viewed downwardly, when the tumbler is in its normal upright position. When viewed in this manner (as indicated in Fig. 1) this corrugated or stepped surface produces a .lens effect which is not only ornamental in itself but also tends to hide any'blisters or other defects in the internal glass structure that might happen to be present. The stepped surfaces in the bottom of the foot also provide convenient rings for the application of bands of color which will be visible through the glass walls to change or enhance the ornamental appearance of the tumbler.

I claim:

1. An integral glass article comprising an upper hollow receptacle portion having an upper open mouth and a closed bottom, and an integral downwardly and outwardly extending foot-portion substantially symmetrical about a central vertical axis, the lower inner surface of this foot portion being dished upwardly toward the bottom of the receptacle in a series of substantially concentric steps consisting of substantially horizontal rings with rounded connecting portions.

2. An integral glass article comprising an upper hollow receptacle portion having an upper open mouth and a closed bottom, and an integral foot portion substantially symmetrical about a central vertical axis the outer upper surface of this foot portion being smooth and continuously curved outwardly and downwardly from the bottom of the receptacle, and the lower inner surface of which is dished upwardly toward the bottom of the receptacle in a series of substantially concentric steps.

3. An integral glass article comprising an upper hollow receptacle portion having an upper open mouth and a closed bottom, and an integral foot portion substantially symmetrical about a central vertical axis the outer upper surface of this foot portion being smooth and continuously curved outwardly and downwardly from the bottom of the receptacle, and the lower inner surface of which is dished upwardly toward the bottom of the receptacle in a series of substan- I:

tially concentric steps with; curved connecting portions. v t L.

- 4. An'integral glass articles comprising an upper hollow receptacle portion having an upper open mouth and a closed bottom, and an integral foot portion substantially symmetrical about a central vertical axis the outer upper surface of thisjoot portion being smooth and continuously curved outwardly and downwardly from'the bot tom of the receptacle, the lower inner surface of which is dished upwardly toward the bottom of the receptacle in a series of substantially con: centric steps consisting of substantially horizontal rings with rounded connecting portions.

, 5. A transparent glass article comprising an upper hollow receptacle portion having an upper open mouth and a closed bottom, and'an integral foot portion substantially symmetrical about a central vertical axis, this foot portion being in the form of an outwardly and downwardly extending flange the,v outer' surface of which is smooth and continuously curvedoutwardly and downwardly from the bottom of the receptacle and the lower inner surface of which is dished upwardly toward the bottom of the receptacle in a series of concentric steps with curved connecting portions so as to produce a lens effect as viewed downwardly through the transparent foot.

(LA transparent glass article comprising an upper hollow receptacle portion having an upper open mouth and a closed bottom, and an integral foot portion substantially symmetrical about a central vertical axis, this foot portionbeing in the form of an outwardly anddownwardly extending flange, the lower portion of. the outer wall of the receptacle curving inwardlyand down- .wardly atthe bottom of the receptacle and the outer wall of the foot curving outwardly and downwardly so as to form a smooth surfaced reentrant angle between the receptacle and foot, the lower inner surface of the foot portion being dished upwardly toward the bottom of the receptacle in a series of concentric steps with curved connecting portions so as to produce a lens efiect as viewed downwardly through the transparent foot. y v HAROLD R. SCHUTZ. 

